Daily Devotional For Sunday, June 8, 2025
Today is what we call “The Lord’s Day,” really, every day is the Lord’s day. Yesterday, we started looking at what it means to follow the Lord Jesus Christ. Some say that all that is needed to be saved and get one’s ticket to heaven is belief or simply believe. If it were all that simple, we might have more wanting to be a Christian. The reason I say that is due to one passage in James 2:19, “You believe there is one God. Good! But the demons believe that, too, and they tremble with fear” (NCV). How many of you believe that demons are going to heaven for simply believing? The last time I checked in the Gospels, Jesus said this about what happens to the lost on Judgment Day in Matthew 25:41, “Then He will also say to those on His left, ‘Depart from Me, accursed ones, into the eternal fire which has been prepared for the devil and his angels’” (NASB). Do you realize and understand that even though the devil and his angels (demons) believe, their belief still sends them to hell for all eternity?
When it comes to sharing the Gospel, many use John 3:16-17 as their foundation. Some refer to Paul and Silas and what they said to the Philippian jailer in Acts 16:31 as that is all that is needed for salvation and a ticket to heaven. When you read these two passages it is easy to convince oneself that belief is all that is needed. But the context says something different. In John 3, when Jesus engaged in a conversation with a religious leader named Nicodemus to be born again, Jesus was calling Nicodemus to live a completely different life than the one he was currently living. Paul and Silas in Acts 16 tells the Philippian jailer to believe in Jesus and they were asking him to do something more than just give some kind of mental assent about Jesus. This Roman jailer knew Rome was hunting down Christians, arresting them, flogging them, beating them , imprisoning them and killing them all over the Roman Empire. This jailer knew what the cost would be.
In the book of Romans when the Apostle Paul calls the Roman Christians to believe in the saving power of Jesus and declare Him the Sovereign ruler over their lives rather than the Roman emperor, they knew what he was asking them to do – insure their possible future death. So, if demons cannot get into heaven for simply believing, what does this mean? If you travel around the world, you will hear Hindus, Muslims, Jews, agnostics express some kind of “belief” in Jesus. They are not much different in their “belief” than many half-hearted, cultural loving, self-seeking church attenders in any church.
This is why we must take seriously Jesus’ warning to us in Matthew 7:21-23:
“Not everyone who says to Me, ‘Lord, Lord,’ will enter the kingdom of heaven, but he who does the will of My Father who is in heaven will enter. (22) Many will say to Me on that day, ‘Lord, Lord, did we not prophesy in Your name, and in Your name cast out demons, and in Your name perform many miracles?’ (23) And then I will declare to them, ‘I never knew you; depart from Me, you who practice lawlessness’” (NASB).
I don’t know about you, but I have never performed a miracle nor cast out demons. So, clearly Jesus says that the saying, “Lord, Lord” is not enough to give us assurance of salvation and heaven, but only those who obey Jesus will enter the kingdom of God and heaven. Less you get confused here, Jesus is not referring to works. We are not saved by our works. Works are not the entry point into salvation and heaven, grace is. Read Ephesians 2:8-9, but the grace we have received should result in visible obedience and fruit. Jesus makes a huge point of this in the Sermon on the Mount in Matthew 7:16-20. Anyone not bearing the right spiritual fruit is cut down and thrown into hell. If our fruit does not reflect that we are following Jesus, then we are producing sinful fruit and that will be rejected by God on Judgment Day.
In recent surveys, nearly 70% of all Americans claim to be “Christian.” 70% !! But here are some other disillusioning stats on those 70% – less than 50% of them attend church weekly (See this link: The Pew Report). And of that 70% who claim to be a “Christian,” only 20% believe the Bible is the inspired, inerrant and infallible Word of God (see this link: The Gallup Poll). And of that 50%, the majority of them do not have a biblical worldview. Instead, they have a cultural worldview. In these same surveys, the researchers wanted to push and go deeper.
Of the 70%, they asked them, “Do you consider yourself “born-again?” – 50% of the 70% said, “Yes!” Yet, further surveys reveal that these same Christians believe their works can and will save them. Many think that Christians and Muslims worship the same God. And many in this group say they believe Jesus sinned when He was here. They say they believe there is no devil or demons or even hell. So, I ask you: is belief enough?
Some have looked at these stats and said the modern church attendee and Christian are not much different from this world and our culture. There might be some truth to that, but what I think this data shows sadly is we have a whole lot of people in America and in church who think they are saved when in reality – they are not. Let me illustrate my point this way:
Let’s say you and I are to meet up at McAlister's Deli for lunch. We text back and forth to confirm our meeting at noon. You get there and the line is long, but you go sit at a table to wait for me. 10 minutes, 20 minutes, 30 minutes, 45 minutes and finally after 60 minutes, I show up, sweating all over. I apologize for being so late and tell you I decided to ride my bike over instead of driving, to get some exercise. While coming down the cross-city trail, near the church, a driver approached. He was driving 60 mph texting on his phone instead of keeping his eyes on the road. He left his lane and came over to the cross-city trail and hit me head-on. I went flying through the air into the yard of the Lutheran church down from Southside. Since it had rained so much, their yard was a “pond” of standing water and I hit it. Thinking I was fine, because he drove away, I picked up my bike and I quickly finished riding to meet you at McAlister’s Deli.” Would you believe I was fine? NO. Why? A person who gets hit on a bike by a car traveling 60 mph is going to look different afterwards. I would have been muddy all over from hitting the pond, bloody and probably had broken bones or a concussion and in shock that made me think I was fine. Most likely I would have texted you from the Emergency Room where an ambulance would have taken me. You would think I was lying.
What’s my point? I do not believe that someone as BIG as God can come into us and we do not look radically different than we did before He came into our lives. I believe as Scripture teaches that as people let Christ give them His life, as they come face-to-face with the Resurrected Jesus in their life, they are overwhelmed and repentant of their sin.
I believe this reality then motivates them to no longer be conformed to this world, but to be transformed for the rest of their lives by Jesus Christ. That’s the Apostle Paul’s point in Romans 12:2. The word the Apostle Paul uses here for “transform” is the Greek New Testament word [μεταμορφόω, metamorophoo]. This is where we get our English word “metamorphosis.” You remember this from basic biology.
We use this to describe how a larva spins a cocoon, and over time, transforms into a butterfly. The larva is one species distinct now from the butterfly. Not only are they different species, you can visually see the difference in them. That is our goal in Christ. We are allowing Him to transform us from our old sinful nature into a new spiritual nature that over time, resembles Jesus more and more. That is Paul’s point in 2 Corinthians 5:17.
Assignment: Reflect – how radically different are you today than from the day you first “believed” in Jesus? Is your fruit different from the world’s fruit? I didn’t ask if you go to church or are in a community group or tithe, or serve. Does your fruit resemble the world and culture or is your fruit biblical, godly and holy? Is your life more of a cultural worldview or a biblical worldview? Is your life radically and visually different to others? Spiritual deception is both dangerous and enslaving. That is the point of 2 Corinthians 4:4. Would the Lord say to you what He says He will on Judgment Day in Matthew 7:21-23?
Scripture To Meditate On: John 12:40, “He has blinded their eyes and He hardened their heart, so that they would not see with their eyes and perceive with their heart, and be converted and I heal them” (NASB).
Prayer To Pray: “Dear Lord, I want more than just belief. I want to be transformed more and more to have the character of Christ, to have a biblical worldview and it is so obvious to others, it is a light that draws them to You. Please forgive me of my sins and use me to be Your light and voice in this demonically deceived world. I love You Lord. In Jesus’ name, Amen!”
I love you Southside! – Pastor Kelly